Overall, shootings and homicides in Baltimore City are on the decline. Compared to this time last year, homicides are down by about 17% and shootings down 8%. However, a closer look at the data reveals not all districts are taking a break from the bloodshed.
While police focus their efforts on the most dangerous districts, others seem to be suffering the consequences.
Compared to this time last year, homicides in the Southeastern police district are up 56% and non-fatal shootings are up 76%. The same goes for the Northeast, where homicides are up 54% and non-fatal shootings are up 72%.
Baltimore City’s police union president, Mike Mancuso points to a lack of police manpower. Across the city, the department is down at least 500 officers and Mancuso says resources aren’t being distributed evenly.
Since the inception of the Group Violence Reduction Strategy (GVRS), a centerpiece to the mayor’s crime fighting strategy, Mancuso says, “They flooded the Western District with personnel and the officers did a great job with crime reductions.”
This week, Police Commissioner Michael Harrison touted an overall reduction in homicides and shootings, but to the East, new concerns have emerged.
According to Mancuso, from September 2022 to April 2023, the Northeast district, “has not been receiving new officers,” he said, “We just don’t have enough officers. When we reduced murders a decade ago to under 200, every patrol shift went on the street with 20-22 officers. Now it’s 10-14 each shift (sometimes less). There were also 400 plainclothes officers, flooding violent areas, a decade ago. Now there is maybe 1/4 of that.”
Wednesday, FOX45 asked the Baltimore City Police Department what they attribute the uptick to and how they plan to address it. We also asked if there are less patrols in that area this year compared to this time last year.
As of the time this article was published, we have not heard back.